the baboon and the fig tree
by wensdays witch
Summary: love story of sorts between renji and oc. rated m for later chapters. set after the war with aizen.
1. a much needed transfer

Okay, so this is my first fanfic and I know it's short but bear with me.

Please enjoy and review.

More chapters to come soon.

* * *

**a much needed transfer**

"I think Ichijiku- san would be a wonderful addition to your division, Byakuya- san."

" I received your papers already Unohana,...and I returned them." spoke the 6th division captain calmly, without looking up from his paper work.

Unohana closed her eyes and sighed.

"And that is where the problem lies..."

Sasu never lifted her eyes from the floor.

Unohana -taisho warned that it may come to this after Kuchiki – taisho returned the paperwork for her transfer with a stamp of "denied".

She quickly brushed a strand of her long black hair from her eyes.

Sasu didn't think it would come down to her captain arguing for her placement in the 6th division.

Her grades at the academy weren't that bad and she had served her division diligently.

She studied hard and had mastered the many healing kido that Unohana taught all of her division.

She was a third-seat and had worked hard to get there.

Was the last 23 years of her life here worth nothing?

Why did he not see her potential?

It's true.

Looking at her, one would assume that the 4th division was about the best she could hope for.

She was, by some peoples standards, a small frame.

Ink black hair brushed at her waist, hanging on her uniform in soft curls.

Her hands were small, she had to admit, but they held oko and ono just fine.

She felt the pair of kunai , tucked snugly into the back of her uniforms sash.

Byakuya looked up finally to see the shinigami in question, head down, apparently lost in a frustrating thought, with her fist balled.

He closed his eyes.

Knowing her for as long as he had, Unohana was not going to let this rest.

She may appear mild mannered, but Byakuya knew better.

"Fine"

Sasu' s bright green eyes snapped up from the floor.

Unohana smiled warmly.

Byakuya just stared at Sasu.

"please report to my office tomorrow before morning training."

"hai!" squeaked Sasu, causing Byakuya to cast his glare.

"It's settled then." spoke Unohana as she rested her hand Sasu 's shoulder.

They both bowed and left the office, closing the door behind them quietly.

Byakuya sighed and returned to the mountain of paper work currently threatening to over take his desk.


	2. just a lost cause

_okay, so this is the second installment, (thank the heavens for spell-check cause i can't spell to save my life...)_

_it's from renji's pov._

_enjoy and review._

_ps if anyone can tell me how to format my story so it actually turns out the way i want it to...let me know. :S_

* * *

**just a lost cause...**

the sun was setting over the whitewashed buildings of the court.

It gave them kind of an eerie glow....

Another day...

gone.

Renji stared out across the sight, legs crossed , atop the division 6 barracks.

This sunset reminded him of that day.

The day he had truly and utterly lost.

Lost the only person he felt cared about him at the time.

Lost the person who, everything he had done for the last 50 years, was for.

It reminded him of the day he lost Rukia.

Lost to a mere ryoka.

there was blood everywhere.

On the ground

on his clothes.

in his hair.

on his blade.

But he still stood in front of her.

Maybe it was the adrenaline still running through his veins.....

but she had never looked more beautiful.

He was bleeding badly, but at the moment, it didn't matter.

Nothing mattered but the brown eyes staring up at him.

"Rukia ..."

"Renji...your hurt....let me get someone from division 4...."

she turned to shunpo... but Renji had a firm hold on her arm.

"Rukia,...i....i love you..." he spoke quietly.

she didn't look around.

She just stood there.

Motionless.

Silent.

The setting sun casting a glow on her otherwise dark hair.

Renji marveled in it's beauty, making the mistake of letting go of her arm.

And she ran.

She never looked back, not once.

When she was out of sight, renji fell to his knees.

It seemed to take an eternity for his shins to connect to the ground.

He just stared.

And then it went dark.

….......

when he woke, it was alone.

It was dark.

Not a calming darkness,

but a cold, bone biting darkness.

Like the night after a loved one dies.

He felt his body.

He was healed, save for a few deeper wounds.

He took some time, lying there, to reflect.

He thought of their childhood.

Of their time at the academy.

Of the day Rukia was accepted into the Kuchiki family, into nobility.

Of the days in seireitei.

Of the times spent aiding Ichigo.

Oh, how she looked at Ichigo.....

it was ….just a lost cause.

He knew it when he spoke to her.

But it was his last chance.

He balled his fist as he looked out the window.

….....

that was five years ago now.

Rukia, in an apparently valiant effort to distance herself from him, had decided to denounce the Kuchiki family (much to their disapproval) and live in the living world with Ichigo until he died.

She hadn't spoken to him after he had confessed to her.

Maybe it was better that way, but....

There were times that he....

thought it was a bad dream....

but it wasn't.

And now he was alone again.

Sure, he had friends.

People who, he had come to realize, cared for him.

Ikkaku and Yumichika, Iba, and Kira, amongst others.

But it wasn't the same.

Nobody could take Rukia' s place.

….....

or so he thought.


	3. shaky introductions

Yay! Chapter 3!

little bit longer this time, hope you don't mind.

Chapter 4 coming soon.

Please, please, please review.

Feed back would be appreciated.

* * *

**shaky introductions... **

Renji and Byakuya were seated at their respective desk, doing paperwork, in the division office when they heard a soft knock at the door.

Renji made to stand up to answer it, but the taisho raised his hand to seat him.

"You may come in." spoke Byakuya, as he gave his full attention to the door.

Renji , tattooed brow furrowed in concern and confusion, resumed his seat..

Most of the court wasn't up this early, save the 11th division for training, and his taisho and him to catch up on paperwork.

As he was thinking this, a short and slender girl walked in, looking curious yet apprehensive.

Renji didn't recognize her and assumed by her expression, she must be here to deliver a message from one of the lower ranking seated members, as they weren't authorized to use the hell butterflies.

Renji made to stand again, to give his taisho some privacy, but Byakuya raised his hand again, motioning for him to be seated.

Renji didn't know this girl but he was apparently supposed to hear what she had to say.

Byakuya returned to his paperwork as he spoke.

"You are early, Ichijiku- san ."

The girl blushed deeply and held her hands in front of her as she stared at the floor.

In an almost lightning fast motion, she tucked the right strand of her hair behind her ear.

The colour on her cheeks never faded and she never took her eyes off the floor.

But Renji could see her soft face better now.

He quickly pushed down his ascetic evaluations.

_Now was not the time. _

Still, the girl said nothing.

Byakuya caught Renji staring at the girl in front of him, though Renji didn't notice this.

"_hmmmm..."_

He turned back to his new subordinate, still standing where she had when she first came in, in front of his desk.

The silence and tension in the room was unbearable.

Byakuya stood then spoke softly, figuring it was time they were introduced.

"Abarai -san, this is the new 3rd seat for division 6. Her name is Ichijiku Sasu- san.

I would like you to show her around this morning." Byakuya seated himself and resumed his work.

Both Sasu and Renji needed a moment to gather their thoughts and composure .

"W_e've never had a third seat, never, not once, since I joined this squad 35 years ago...what is taisho up to?.." _thought renji, as he reflected on the history of his division.

"_Third seat?....." _It was true, Sasu had held that position in division 4, but she didn't feel it was right to assume she would hold the same position in the 6th. The 6th division was much stronger and it was uncommon for seated officers to hold their position during a transfer to, or from, any squad.

Byakuya looked up after several minutes of silence, as he felt the two had their eyes set on him.

"Is there a problem?" he glared at both his vice-captain and his new third seat.

"Not at all, taisho." spoke renji authoritatively, eyes closed for only a moment, as he stood from behind his desk.

Byakuya nodded. "Morning training starts in half an hour. Please escort Ichijiku- san down to the training grounds." he said as he once again brought his attention back to his work.

Renji motioned for Sasu to follow him quietly out of the division office.

Unbeknown to them, Byakuya's eyes were on their backs as they left.

…............


	4. Jiku means Stem

Chapter 4, here it is!

In case it wasn't realized in previous chapters...

I DON'T OWN BLEACH. Just Sasu Ichijiku. Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo

Please enjoy!

* * *

Renji and Sasu quietly left the division office just as the sun was touching the edges of the court.

The 11th division could be heard clashing swords above the otherwise calm morning.

There was a subtle breeze winding it's way against the building, softly caressing Sasu's midnight black tresses and teasing Renji's violent red ponytail. Sasu carefully watched Renji as they walked down the boardwalk, looking for any hint of a desire for conversation. They didn't speak till they were quite a distance from the 6th division barracks.

Finally, Renji inclined his head toward her casually as they continued to walk.

"So....what division are you from? I'm assuming you didn't just graduate." He had already turned his focus forward again by the time he was done speaking.

Good thing too... Sasu turned such a deep shade of red, she was sure that he would feel the heat on her face before he even saw it.

"division 4." Sasu muttered more to herself than to him.

It was well known that the 4th division wasn't exactly a battle squad.

Renji didn't appear troubled by this news, and Sasu was grateful for that.

She knew some of the other division members might not seem that unconcerned about her previous squad, and might make assumptions about her level of skill.

Renji placed his connected hands on the back of his head as he walked.

"you sound ashamed of that..."

Sasu looked at him through the corner of her eyes, then continued to stare at the floor.

"maybe a little bit."

Renji stopped so suddenly that Sasu almost walked right into him.

He dropped his arms and glared at her hard, agitation evident on his face.

"Why?"

His simple question stung her.

She had nothing to say.

She just stared at the boards of the walkway.

"At least have enough respect for me to look at me when I'm talking to you."

Sasu looked up but was afraid of what she'd see.

She had never seen a look as intense as the one Renji possessed now.

She made to look away again but Renji was quicker.

Grabbing the front of her kimono, she thought he was about to strike her.

But he only spoke in an angry yet clearly controlled voice.

"Never be ashamed of who you were, who you are, or who you might become."

He released his hold on her uniform, and turned to continued to walk toward the training grounds.

He had gone only a few paces when he turned around again.

Sasu was looking directly at him.

Then she bowed.

Renji couldn't hide his surprise.

But by the time he tried to respond she was already a number of paces ahead of him.

Renji put a hand on his forehead and shook his head.

_This is gonna be interesting._

* * *

They hadn't spoken since the incident back at the boardwalk, but the silence wasn't uncomfortable.

Only a few of the other division 6 members were there, a few were sick, a couple out with injuries.

The present members watched the 11th division finish up their apparently grueling training. A few people had some deep wounds and one poor guy was screaming like his legs had been broken.

Sasu covered her mouth in horror but Renji just closed his eyes and shook his head.

"That's just how the 11th division is, they gotta get used to it." spoke a familiar voice.

Ikkaku stood there, covered in blood and a scattering of shallow wounds, Yumichika right behind him, mark less, of course. Yumichika brushed a strand of hair out of his eyes as he spoke.

"You shouldn't look so surprised, Jiku-chan, it's not very beautiful."

Sasu dropped her hands as she glared at Yumichika.

Renji cracked an evil half smile. _"Jiku- chan?"_

Ikkaku turned to his best friend, then vaguely pointing to Sasu, he asked "You know her?"

Yumichika nodded.

"She's the division 4's third seat."

both of them turned toward the two, with faces clearly wondering why they were down here, together, and almost alone.

"**Was** in the 4th division." corrected Sasu, half smiling before their minds could wander any further.

Renji nodded, "She's division 6's third seat now."

the other two were clearly disappointed for the lack of drama.

Kenpachi taisho's booming voice could be heard giving orders to the other members of the 11th squad, so Ikkaku and Yumichika bid them farewell and ran to catch up to their captain.

It was renji who spoke first.

"err... so why did he call you Jiku- chan anyway?...."

Sasu sighed and turned to watch the other members of her new squad arrive.

"my last name, Ichijiku, means fig tree, and Jiku, by it's self, means stem."

renji still looked clueless. Sasu felt a twinge of annoyance. Surely he wasn't blind?

"He's making a reference to my figure."

renji blushed so deeply his cheeks almost matched his hair.

Sasu sighed again and turned her full attention to the incoming members.


	5. almost exposed

okay, so here's chapter 5!

hope you like it. Its a bit longer than my other chapters but its a gooder.

once again, i don't own bleach.

enjoy and comment.

* * *

The other squad members showed up shortly.

Sasu watched quietly from his side as Renji introduced her as the new third seat ( to many raised eyebrows) and proceeded to start directing the training exercises. Renji had said that she wasn't expected to participate today, but tomorrow would be a different story. Half way through the training exercises though, boredom was beginning to sink in. She watched as her new squad stretched, ran laps, did sit-ups and assorted other stationary trials, and struggled with new and various sword techniques. This was tiresome to say the least. Watching men and women sweat and grunt around for 2 hours straight was not Sasu's idea of a productive morning, so after a while, she asked Renji if she could join in anyway. Renji was surprised by her initiative. Normally, any excuse that could warrant a person missing the morning drills had been used, with some division members going so far as to hurt themselves during their previous shifts. Renji watched (with a twinge of jealously )as she paired up with the division's 6th seat. He seemed more than happy for the company, as Sasu wasn't exactly a troll.

"_I'm gonna have to keep an eye on him..."_

But really, Renji never turned his attention to him again for the rest of the drill, as he was far more interested in his partner. Sasu was wickedly fast, with the poor 6th seat officer barely able to keep his eyes on her. Her shunpo had to be equivalent to that of someone that had just learned to flash step. And although her zanpakuto was unusual in both shape and the fact it manifested itself as a pair, she appeared to have no problem in either defensive or offensive maneuvers. Renji studied her zanpakuto closer. A pair of kunai, both short and thick, with slightly longer, wrapped handles, ending in a ring. Unlike most kunai that Renji had seen, these ones were obviously sharp, as Sasu took advantage of an opening and sliced a shallow wound in the 6th seats arm. Her hair flailed around as she advanced and her movements, calculated and forceful, reminded him of someone else he once knew well.

He pushed the memory from his mind.

It wouldn't do any good to open old wounds.

He continued to watch as she took down the unsuspecting 6th seat in a final maneuver, first blocking his attack with her right hand's kunai, pressed back against her arm, then quickly sliding her blade down his sword, sending sparks as a mere distraction. She then brought her left around to attack, he backed off, but tripped over the foot she had placed behind his left leg, causing him to fall backwards, Sasu's right weapon thrown at him. The kunai was now implanted in the ground, mere inches from his face. Renji could see a rather large bead of sweat run down the exposed side of his face as he gulped and looked over to see just how close the kunai was. Still lying on his back, he raised his hands in front of himself and proceeded to half chuckle and half shake out a thank you for her being his partner.

Renji sighed.

He had better go save the 6th seat. Sasu didn't seem to be picking up the hint that the poor guy didn't want her to train with him anymore.

Sasu plucked oko out of the ground as renji walked over.

"Err... how bout me and you train for a bit?"

Sasu was started by his offer. The 6th seat appeared relived as he got up and tried to sneak away.

"Don't you have to supervise the others?" Sasu watched from the corners of her eyes as the 6th seat tried to retreat unnoticed.

"Nah, trainings done for the day." Renji chuckled at this sight then turned and motioned to the rest of the division that they were dismissed.

Sasu nodded her head at the offer. Renji gave her one of his half crooked smiles.

Renji unsheathed zabimaru as Sasu took her position.

"Howl, zabimaru!"

Sasu watched, startled, as her vice captain's sword took on fang like extensions, protruding from the blade.

Renji shot backwards and prepared to strike. He had been watching her this whole time(though not necessarily to study her attacks he had to admit to himself) and knew that although she could throw her zanpakuto,she wasn't likly and his best chance was to stay as far away from her as possible. Sasu was puzzled by how far away he had planted himself. Sure, she had noticed him watching her and had assumed that he had figured out that she was skilled at close combat, but his sword couldn't reach that far either, could it?

Why, he had to be at least 20 meters away.....so unless he was going to come forward, he couldn't attack either, right?

Renji's smile widened as he saw all this going across her face.

He casually swung zabimaru, one handed, onto his shoulder as he spoke.

"You shouldn't let your thoughts be so easily read."

With that, Renji swung zabimaru off his shoulder and straight at Sasu. She was quick but his sword's ability had taken her by surprise and she had only just gotten out of the way.

Zabimaru just curved around and came at her again, but this time she stood her ground.

She crossed oko and ono defensively in front of her and blocked his attack, but just barely, as the force behind his sword was starling. She was being pushed back as zabimaru collected and curled in front of her.

"_What power....."_

Sasu was forced to jump to the side to avoid being crushed by his sword and used the opportunity to run forward.

Lucky for Renji, he saw this and called zabimaru back to defend. Surprise was evident on Sasu's face again as Renji blocked her direct attack.

" I ain't vice captain for nothing you know." Sasu had to smirk at his comment.

She brought up her left leg and proceeded to knee him in the ribs, then shifted ono around his blade and toward his neck on the right side, but was blocked yet again by zabimaru being brought up from the base and turned. Renji pushed her off of him and back, and swung zabimaru out again, this time connecting with her left shoulder, and ripping through it. She staggered as her shoulder was released from zabimaru's attack, falling onto her knees. She felt the wound. Blood was pouring down the front of her kimono, staining her pale skin. It was deeper that Renji had intended for it to be, but not critical for sure. He recalled zabimaru and sheathed his sword. Sighing, he walked over to the now standing Sasu. She was clamping her shoulder with her right hand and shuddered and winced as Renji tried to remove it to get a better look.

His attack had cut clean through her kimono and he felt a slight embarrassment as he was staring at her almost naked shoulder. He pushed this aside and attempted to appear professional. "Maybe you should go see the 4th division..."

Sasu smiled and shook her head.

"No need to."

she concentrated and produced a mid level healing sphere.

Renji watched as Sasu moved the sphere around and through the wound and after a few minutes, the only clue that she had sustained a blow, was the blood on the remains of her kimono.

Sasu could tell Renji was jealous, though she didn't know why and asked.

"I'm not that great at kido..." he muttered under his breath.

She grabbed his kimono robes and repeated what he had told her earlier.

"Never be ashamed of who you were, who you are or who you might become."

Renji blushed, not because of her words, but because when she had moved so suddenly, the left shoulder of her kimono had fallen, almost exposing her breast. He reached around and promptly hiked it back up, as much to his embarrassment as to hers.

"You also shouldn't expose yourself to someone you've just met."

Sasu released the front of his top and grabbed her kimono's shredded shoulder, blushing even deeper than him.

Renji rubbed the back of his head, trying to think of something to say to release the tension, but he was saved the trouble by their taisho.

" Training hard, I see."

Renji looked left to see his captain walking toward them. He gulped loudly.

"What happened here?" he asked when he had stopped beside them, indicating Sasu's torn kimono.

Renji blushed again for what seemed the hundredth time today, this must've looked bad.

Here they were, alone, with one of them holding up half of her kimono.

"Taisho, I can explain...." stammered Renji, hands up in front of him defensively. Byakuya glared at him, but was silent. "It was a training accident....." Byakuya's attention turned to Sasu as she spoke.

" hmmm...I'm interested to know why you two continued training when it seems Abarai-san dismissed the rest of the squad 30 minutes ago." Renji was silent. Sasu stared at the ground, but thought better than to let go of her kimono's shoulder. It was Byakuya who spoke again. " Ichijiku-san, please go and change, then report to my office for further instructions. Abarai- san, please follow me back to the office as you still have paperwork that requires your attention."

Renji bowed in respectful obedience as Byakuya turned to leave.

Renji gave Sasu one last look of embarrassment before he left the training grounds with their captain.


	6. what a day

**yay!** chapter 6!

once again....i don't own bleach.

enjoy!

* * *

**what a day....**

Sasu undressed slowly as the water ran in the next room for her bath.

Even though she had healed the wound from earlier, it was still tender and the work that her new taisho had her do for her first day hadn't helped matters. He had her work with Renji for the first half of the day, organizing files, which normally, she assumed, would have not been that bad, if it hadn't have been for what had happened earlier between them and the fact that most of the files were heavy and had to be placed up over head.

Sasu cringed inward at the memory of this morning. It wasn't that she didn't think Renji was attractive, quite the opposite really( to her surprise), but she didn't want him thinking that she was throwing herself at him, especially for reasons some people might assume.

The second part of the day was pretty quiet and peaceful. She had to work by herself, filling out stacks of paperwork, though at the moment she couldn't remember what all for.

She sighed.

"_what a day...."_

she folded her kimono, sash, pants and socks and placed them on the shelf provided. She looked around inquisitively. The 6th division bath house was much more, for lack of a better word...classic,.. rather than functional like the one she was used to. It was all wood and stone. The walls and benches were wood, stained dark, like ebony, with the floor and accessories being stone, bleached almost white. She seated herself and proceeded to wash up. Sasu was thankful the bath house was empty. She had asked one of the women in the divisision earlier when she had the chance to sneak away from her paperwork, as to when the bath house closed.

That was why she was now having to fill the bath, but she like it better that way anyway.

Normally the water was chilly by the time she got to it.

Sasu set to rubbing her thighs, legs and feet with the soap. It felt good to rest, cleaning herself in the warm and steamy bath house. She leaned back as she rinsed she suds off her legs. It was as if she was rinsing her past away, she mused to herself. All those years of disappointment. She sighed again, but not out of exasperation this time. This time, it was a sigh of contentment. Life would carry on, life would get better. And with that, she grabbed her towel and wrapped her hair, standing up to make her way to the bath.

Then her heart felt like it blew out of her chest.

The shock on her face was mirrored clearly in those hazel eyes.

But then, the eyes shifted....from shock......to something...like lust.......

and his eyes were not the only thing to speak in cinders.......

Sasu's eyes followed a bead of sweat as it rolled down his tattooed brows, sliding seductively over his neck and a quickening pulse.

It continued down, trailing a path of moisture over his scared and heavily inked chest, puffed out in great effort and covered in a feverish blush. Still, the droplet carried on, Sasu's eyes upon in, as it continued it's journey over a well defined stomach, around the edges of a faint treasure trail and into his sash. When the droplet was no more, she returned her eyes to his. They hadn't moved.

She realized that she had been staring at him this whole time, wist making no attempt to conceal herself.

Sasu felt her own blush spread, the heat not only scorching her face, but lighting her whole body aflame. The effect must have been arousing, for she heard him growl softly in his throat. She raised an arm to cover her breasts, but found her nipples erect with the now chilly air.

" _Renji..."_

she had looked away for only a few moments, to try to collect what remained of her sanity, but he had took that the wrong way.

And now he was gone.


	7. A misunderstanding

Yay!

After much writers block, here it is!

Chapter 7.

please enjoy and remember I do not own bleach.

* * *

**A misunderstanding.  
**

The next morning, Sasu sat at her desk across from Renji, in the office of the 6th division, never once looking up at him from her paperwork since he had arrived.

It was too embarrassing.

Last night seemed....so.....surreal....

and today was just.......awkward.

It was silent as neither of them were obliviously to embarrassed to talk to each other and the captain hadn't yet arrived.

Sasu steeled herself and finally made to make a quick peek at him, but suddenly adverted her eyes when she saw he had done the same.

Sasu didn't have to look again to know that they were both now blushing deeply.

"_How could I have been so stupid? I didn't even try to cover myself, he saw everything!"_

thoughts pranced around Sasu's head as she returned to her work, possibly blushing even deeper.

"_Hopefully, I can get this done so I can go do some filing, I need to get away from him....."_

Renji stole a quick glance again at her as she worked.

"_awe man...what can I say to her?...I'm so sorry? I liked what I saw?....you don't have to be ashamed?..."_

renjibattled with his indecision as he put a hand on his lap, which was a bit of a mistake.

Thinking of her naked was apparently a very powerful stimulant, and he was glad he had the desk to hide this fact.

Renji looked up as Sasu greeted their taisho.

"_Sorry I am late to arrive this morning, I had some matters to attend to at the manor."_

spoke Byakuya as he seated himself at his desk.

Beyond the mountain of paperwork he could see that although both of his subordinates had returned their attention to their work, their eyes would occasionally flit across the room to the other.

The glances were short lived, possibly in an attempt to go unnoticed, and both of them appeared to be a bit pink in the cheeks.

His normally reserved curiosity was peaked.

He also noticed that Renji would shift uncomfortably in his seat occasionally and Byakuya was sure that his assumptions on why were correct.

Nevertheless, the tension in the room was almost unbearable.

After about half an hour of observing the two over his work, Sasu finally stood up, walked over and deposited her finished work on his desk.

"_These papers need to be signed before their sent out taisho. May I be excused to the filing room? There's some organizing I'd like to resume." _

Byakuya noted a stiffness in her voice but raised his hand and nodded his approval.

On her way out he noticed that she spoke no farewell to Renji and that he had eyes for nothing but her as she left.

When the door closed, Renji quickly glanced at his taisho, cheeks once again flushing.

Byakuyanever looked away, untill he was finished his question.

" _Would__ you mind telling me what happened between you two?"_

Renji looked up, horrified, as his taisho shuffled papers around on his desk.

"_It wasn't an order, just a request." _Byakuya quietly added.

Renji looked down at his desk and shook his head.

The rest of the morning would have sounded peaceful to someone who could not hear the thoughts of the vice captain.

"_That was so stupid....I need to apologize to her.....saying sorry is better than nothing at all...but what if she won't accept it?....or what if she tells taisho?...taisho already knows somethings up though....."_

Renji's thoughts rolled around before his eyes late into the morning.

His hands shook so bad he could barely write and his focus kept waning, sometimes to inappropriate things,( things he would be better off to forget he ever saw,) and his physical reaction to them.

He was glad once again for the size and depth of his desk, although he did have to shift sometimes.

Byakuya had studied Renji for most of the morning and he had almost had enough of his lack of concentration.

When renji asked to be dismissed for lunch, Byakuya told him he could take the rest of the day off, but to be back tomorrow.

Renji was relived. He left the office quickly before his taisho could change his mind.

"_I should go and apologize now....she said she was filing, right?..."_

Renji made a sharp turn right and made his way toward the division 6 filing rooms, stopping only when he was right outside the entrance.

He sighed heavily.

It had to be now, or it was gonna be never.

He had only moved a foot, when he heard Ikkaku calling him.

"_oi__, Renji!"_

Renji groaned. Judging by the tone, he could assume what this would be about.

Renji turned around to face an Ikkaku that had had a bit too much to drink for it be only 12:45 pm.

Ikkaku wrapped his arm around Renji's shoulders, in an attempt to appear brotherly, but the main purpose ending up being to support himself.

"_you should come and have a drink with us......and stuff..."_

Iba and Shuuhei both nodded, the motion almost taking Iba out, but Shuuhei was there to catch him clumsily. They were all extremely drunk.

Renji shook his head in astonishment.

"_Jesus Christ, you too Kira?!"_

The blond vice captain smiled shyly and the colour in his cheeks rose.

Shaking Ikkaku off, Renji straighten himself up.

"_Nah... I got stuff to do.."_

the others started to protest loudly ( "_It's five o'clock somewhere renji...")_but Renji shut them up.

"W_ant me to tell your superiors that you're all tanked while on duty?!"_

Renji received some dirty looks but they meandered away shortly.

He sighed and shook his head again.

"_UN-frigging- believable."_

With that, he pushed the doors to the filing office open.

He had only stepped into the building when something whizzed by his head and firmly planted itself in the wall next to the doorway.

He turned his head slightly to see what it was..... Sasu's kunai.

"_Err_._.... maybe this is a bad time...."_


	8. golden oppertunity

Most of this chapter is from Byakuya's point of view or from that of an observer.

Enjoy, reveiw and remember ; I do not own bleach.

* * *

**Golden opportunity.**

Byakuya had sensed that something was amist.

He had followed Renji, on a hunch, the day he had left the main office early and found him, not heading toward the mess halls as Byakuya assumed he would, but towards the division's filing office, where he knew Sasu to be.

Byakuya silently commended him for turning down Ikkaku and the others and even smiled to himself when Renji had to threaten them in order for him to make his desision clear.

Byakuya had always trusted Renji to be true to his duties as a vice captain, even though he had _occasionally _crossed the lines.

that's why he thought his present behavior was unusual; so unlike him.

Captains, vice captains and seated officers were not suppose to engage in conduct that could jeopardize the image of their division, and that included among many other things, chasing members of the opposite sex.

A certain captain aside, most members adhered to this rule.

Byakuya personally had no objection to Renji and Sasu, if they had mutual feelings for each other, as Byakuya had secretly witnessed the way his adopted sister had reacted to Renji's confession years previously.

He knew what loneliness meant, having lost the love of his life.

Byakuya had watched helplessly as Renji had spiraled downward after Rukia had left for the living world, knowing that his own pain had to have paled in comparison to his.

Renji had loved Rukia with everything he had, even going up against Byakuya to prove to and protect her.

It took him a long time to recover and redefine himself without Rukia around, but even still the scars are visible.

Byakuya noticed that Renji has a habit of sitting on the roof to watch the sunsets, that he will refuse a direct order to descend upon the living world if its any where near Karakura town as well as still to this day, trying to erase every aspect of her existence from his life.

Byakuya sighed.

The only problem he had with Renji was his approach to this situation.

He needed to be more subtle, and if he was not, someone may notice and Byakuya will be forced to discipline them both.

Unfortunately, subtlety is not one of Renji's strongest suits, so Byakuya had taken it upon himself to place them together, alone, and as often as he could, without it seeming suspicious.

Weather it was the filing office, cleaning out the division's storage space or just him being absent from the office while they did their work, Byakuya made sure that they had time alone everyday since he had made up his mind about Renji's behavior.

In fact, today he was going to suggest they train together after work, as they were both very studious about that. From what he had heard of Sasu's history, and what he had witnessed of Renji's, they could use the companionship of each other.

But Byakuya was running out of ideas as there was only so much opportunity for them to work together.

He was going to have to think of something......

* * *

"_Kuchiki taisho! Kuchiki taisho!" _

one of the youngest and smallest members of his division came running into his office.

He was out of breath but appeared to be very proud of himself, as he enthusiastically waved a piece of parchment in the air.

"_it's from … Kenpachi taisho... "_

breathed the child, placing his hands on his knees as Byakuya took the paper from him.

"_Thank you, Yokuro- san, you may be excused."_

the blond haired child stood straight slowly in surprise at having his name remembered, recovered himself, then bowed and left.

* * *

"_This is a work order ..."_

Byakuya frowned slightly.

"_originally __for the 11__th__ division..."_

his frown deepened when he turning it over.

There was an untidy scrawl on the back, written in haste, that was most distinctly Kenpachi's.

His writing reminded him of a grade schoolers, where some of the lines are out of place and some words have been substituted for others because he didn't know how to write the more complex characters.

Byakuya sighed before starting to read.

**Got this work order thing from the old man **(Byakuya frowned more...)

**My squade's busy. (**Byakuya rolled his eyes...)

**Could u take care of it? (**Byakuya smiled slightly....)

this is what he needed......

he walked over and released one of the hell butterflies from it's cage, gave it it's instructions and set it free, watching it fly out the window.

This was perfect.

* * *

"_That is correct." _Byakuya was once again sitting at his desk.

Renji looked down at the work order he was holding, while Sasu stood respectfully to the side and behind, hands clasp in front of her.

They had said little to each other since it had happened and being left alone and in each others company latley, had not helped matters in the least.

Their time spent together had been in almost complete silence, save for a few sparse, needed words.

Renji had given up on trying to apologize to Sasu a few days ago, after realizing that she wasn't mad, just really, really embarrassed.

Renji welcomed this epiphany, as he wasn't too eager to talk about it either.

Both were wondering why the captain had summoned them together, yet again.

Renji had appeared to finish reading and raised his head to respond.

"_And you will both will follow the order....regardless of the location, Abarai-san."_

Byakuya opened his eyes slightly and glared as he added the last bit, just as Renji was about to object.

Renji clamped his jaw shut and dropped his arm limply, he was staring hard at his captain.

Sasu tried to remain reserved, but broke and peeked ahead and around Renji's shoulder to catch a glimpse of his expression.

And if looks could kill.......there wouldn't be much left of their captain.


	9. Nitamono

Yay!

Chapter 9.

not much to say again, just that I don't own bleach.

Oh, and I need some encouragement.....no pressure or anything lol.

I was listening to "Come Out of the Shade" sung by the Perishers when I wrote this (it might help you to feel their stories a little better.)

enjoy!

p.s. For the translation of the name of this chapter go to .

it's where I do all my translations :)

* * *

**Nitamono**

Renji was once again sitting, arms on knees, on the warm copper roof, gazing at the sunset.

It had been a long time since he had been here and he'd forgotten how good the view on top of Urahara's house was.

It was peaceful, quietly watching the sky turn a brilliant reddish pink by himself, especially after how Urahara had, after all these years, still treated him like a freeloader.

Renji had to smile to himself as he remembered the look on Sasu's face as she too was referred to as a freeloader over dinner, after she had requested seconds.

Renji had caught on long ago that they were only teasing him and he was now used to it but Sasu had looked confused and genuinely hurt.

This was, after all, the first time she had met this crowd and had felt bad for intruding before he had even brought it up.

Renji looked at his feet and shook his head.

Sometimes that Urahara was just to much...

* * *

The wind whipped her hair across her face as she shunpo'd across town, no real destination in mind.

Sasu was thinking.

Why was she sent with Renji, when one of them would have sufficed?

Why did it seem like Taisho was intensionally pairing them together?

Did he think they had something going on?

How much information had been twisted and how much had he just assumed?

Sasu's fist curled subconsciously.

And why the hell had that sorry excuse for a shop owner referred to her as a freeloader?!

What was he playing at?!

She offered to pay!

She shook her head.

And why had Renji laughed, even as he had just been called one himself?

Maybe they were just teasing....yeah.... that was probably it.

She loosened up a bit, and her fist unclamped themselves.

Still, she had to admit that it had been nice to hear Renji laugh again.

Heck, he hadn't laughed in front of her since before it had happened.

Sasu blushed even at the thought.

God...that was weeks ago, yet it still made her turn red.

She thought for a moment then accepted that it probably always would...

* * *

Renji looked around as someone softly landed on the roof a few meters behind him.

"_Hey."_

He turned is attention forward again to watch the last of the sun dip below the horizon.

Sasu hesitated for a moment, then asked,

"_Renji, why is it that you always watch the sun go down?"_

Sasu stood there behind him, wondering to herself what had prompted her to ask.

Sasu knew he often watched the sun fall in soul society, but was surprised by her own curiosity.

Renji seemed like he was ignoring her for a moment.

A whole minute probably passed before he stood up and acknowledged that she had said anything.

He put his hands in his pockets as he continued to watch the sky's color fade, but he finally spoke.

"_The same reason I don't like coming to Karakura town."_

she looked up from her feet and stared at his back.

Sasu said nothing and Renji was grateful.

"_Rukia lives here now, with Ichigo."_

Sasu held her silence, she understood that Renji was having a hard time taking about this.

Renji sighed and turned his head back to look at her momentarily, then turn his attention forward again.

"_I loved her."_

Sasu swallowed a lump in her throat. She had assumed it would be something to that affect.

She slowly made her way over to Renji and stood beside him.

"_I thought it might be something like that."_

Renji looked at her in the corners of his eyes.

Neither of them said anything for a few minutes, they just stood there watching the stars come out.

"_You know, we aren't all that different."_

Renji looked at her again, disbelief evident on his face.

" _No, its true. our lives are very similar."_

"_And how is that?"_

Sasu looked down at the roof.

Could she tell Renji?

Would he care?

He did share some pretty intimate information about himself with her...

"_Just feeling like you can't have what you need , much less what you want."_

Renji had spoken for her.

Sasu looked him in the eyes for a moment, not sure how he meant that.

He never removed his eyes from what held them in the distance

after a while, Sasu looked forward as well

" _I was rejected too. By the only person I ever genuinely trusted."_

Sasu felt her eyes begin to burn and swell.

That was a painful memory.

Renji peeked at Sasu and saw she was about to cry

" _H_ow_ did it happen?"_

Sasu closed her eyes and the tears fell, dripping off her chin.

Renji had to give her credit. Of the people he had seen break down and cry, she cried with unmistakable dignity.

"_Its not like it even happened. He just never noticed. Do you know what its like to love, yet not be loved?"_

there was an obvious bitterness to the question.

Renji had to put on his characteristic smirk but what he said next wasn't rude.

"_Eh."_

Sasu whipped her head at him and covered her mouth in embarrassment.

"_Oh, renji... I'm so sorry!"_

Renji, smirk still in place, raised his hand in dismissal of her worries.

Shaking his head, he spoke.

" _We should ask Urahara where we're sleeping, it's getting late."_

Sasu nodded in relief, and made to jump off the roof.

Renji looked to the sky and gave one last glance to the stars.


End file.
